un.
28 (CWNews.com) - The cause for the beatification of Pope John Paul II (bio
- news) will formally be
opened on June 28. What lies ahead?

Pope John Paul himself strongly believed that the
Church should offer the saints as models of Christian witness, for the faithful
to imitate. During his 26-year pontificate he presided over an enormous
expansion in the number of people recognized by the Church as saints. He
personally beatified 1,342 people, and canonized 483 saints-- more than matching
the total number of people beatified (1,201) and canonized (302) in the years
between 1588, when the procedures for recognizing saints were established, until
the beginning of his pontificate.

Pope John Paul also inaugurated a simpler procedure for
the recognition of saints, and today the Congregation for the Causes of Saints
is swamped with work. There are nearly 2,000 formal "causes"-- or
investigations-- already open, and petitions arrive every day for the opening of
new causes.

However, the cause of Pope John Paul is certain to
receive special attention. Although the formal procedures require a wait of 5
years after the death of a candidate before a cause can be opened, the late
Pontiff set a precedent when he waived that waiting period in the case of
Blessed Teresa of Calcutta. Pope Benedict XVI (bio
- news) took the same step
when, on May 13, he announced that he would waive the 5-year requirement for his
predecessor, allowing the process to begin immediately.

The cause is likely to proceed quickly, but an enormous
amount of work remains to be done before the beatification of the late Pope is
possible. Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz of Krakow, the longtime secretary to the
deceased Pope, has confessed that he cherishes the "dream" that Pope Benedict
could pronounce the beatification in August, when he visits Cologne for World
Youth Day. But the Polish prelate admits that this is an unrealistic hope.

The process toward beatification begins with an
investigation into the candidate's life and conduct, carried out by officials of
the diocese in which he died-- in the case of Pope John Paul, the Rome diocese.
This investigation is designed to provide evidence that the candidate lived a
life of "heroic virtue." In the process, investigators are expected to examine
all of the public actions, speeches, and writings of the candidate; in the case
of Pope John Paul, this will be an exhausting task.

The procedures leading up to beatification and
canonization have changed considerably over the years. For centuries, the Church
recognized saints simply on the basis of popular devotion. Many Catholics in
Italy-- particularly the lay movement Foccolari-- called for a return to that
tradition in the case of John Paul II. The cries of Santo Subito that
rang out across St. Peter's Square during his funeral testified to the belief
that the beloved Pope should be beatified quickly, because the universal acclaim
for his life and work was sufficient evidence of his virtue.

During the period between the death of John Paul II and
the conclave that elected Benedict XVI, many cardinals threw their support
behind the campaign for quick beatification. When Cardinal Camillo Ruini (bio
- news)presented that
request to Pope Benedict on May 9, he promptly agreed.

Up until the 11th century, saints were regularly
proclaimed by individual bishops, with no intervention by the Pope. The Vatican
gradually imposed a monopoly on the process of declaring saints, however, and by
the 18th century the process leading up to canonization was fixed. In 1983, in
reforming and simplifying the process, Pope John Paul returned a substantial
portion of the authority to diocesan bishops, who supervise the initial
investigation into a candidate's life and virtue. Before the reforms of 1983,
the process of beatification involved a sort of contest between the promoters of
the cause and the "devil's advocate," who was charged with raising every
possible objection and examining any evidence that could weigh against the
candidate's reputation for sanctity. With his apostolic constitution Divinus
Perfectionis Magister , John Paul II simplified the process, gave greater
importance to the compilation of a historical record, and made it possible to
complete the requirements for beatification quickly. The process remains a
lengthy one, however, typically lasting dozens of years. Pope John Paul believed
that the process remains too lengthy, and many officials at the Congregation for
the Causes of Saints agree. Because a cause may continue beyond the lifespan of
those who knew the candidate personally, the research becomes more difficult,
and enthusiasm often wanes as the supporters of the candidacy die. For that
reason, and because investigations involve some costly research, most of the
current causes pending before the Vatican involve religious, whose causes are
supported by the members of their congregations.

On the other hand, some critics objected that the
Vatican had become a "canonization factory" under John Paul II, and suggested
that fewer saints should be formally proclaimed. Cardinal Josť Saraiva Martins,
the current prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, rejects that
charge. The investigation that leads up to beatification and canonization
remains rigorous, he points out. As for the proliferation of saints, the
cardinal argues that it is healthy for the Church to set out a variety of models
for imitation, showing the "complete diversity of heroes in Christian holiness."

Pope John Paul II had strongly championed the argument
that canonization should not be seen as a privilege reserved for the clergy and
religious. The Church needs models of sanctity in everyday life, he consistently
argued. He did not hesitate to proclaim the sainthood of people whose lives were
characterized not by extraordinary acts, but by a simple and consistent piety,
in which they "applied the Gospel daily, in a coherent and concrete manner."

The large number of people beatified in recent years,
Pope John Paul remarked in 1994, shows "the action of the Holy Spirit and the
vitality he provides" to the Church. He also argued that the "young churches" in
distant countries need their own models for sanctity. Most of the saints
recognized by the Church to date have been Europeans, and nearly half of the
current candidates are Italian.

Each of the officials appointed to serve in the
investigation of a cause must take an oath that he will, among other things,
"accept no gift" in connection with the process. Nevertheless, the investigation
itself is a costly affair, involving the research and preparation of extensive
dossiers. In the case of Blessed Padre Pio, the position-- the dossier
sent to the Vatican at the conclusion of the diocesan investigation-- ran to
1,500 pages; 50 copies must be produced. The testimony collected during the
investigation is also collated, routinely amounting to dozens of volumes. A
typical process for beatification can involve expenditures of $60,000. In the
case of Pope John Paul-- whose pontificate produced vast quantities of written
material, and whose candidacy has already produced testimony from thousands of
witnesses-- the costs will be considerably higher.

New expenditures are required when the cause reaches
the point of beatification. The lay people involved in the investigation-- such
as the doctors who are called upon to testify to the validity of a miracle--
must be paid for their work. And while the Vatican organizes the actual
ceremonies for beatification, the organizers of the cause are expected to
provide for the costs. The canonization of St. Josemaria Escriva, the founder of
Opus Dei, involved expenditures of more than $350,000. If Pope John Paul
eventually reaches the stage of canonization, he will join many other popes
formally recognized as saints. All of the first 53 pontiffs, from St. Peter
through St. Gelasius I (492- 496), are now canonized. The last Pope canonized
was Pius X, who was proclaimed a saint by Pope Pius XII in 1954. Pope John Paul
himself beatified both Pius IX (1846- 1878) and John XXIII (1958- 1963). And
causes are now open for the beatification of Pius XII, Paul VI, and John Paul I.